Favorite Foto Friday

No particular theme this week so I thought I would add a cute pic of my nieces Ashton and Aubrey. This picture was taken almost 2 years ago. I chose this picture because both girls are celebrating birthdays...

Last monday, Ash-Baby celebrated her 12th birthday! WOW!!!! Ashton is the biological daughter of my brother David, but was adopted at birth. Her awesome adoptive parents wanted her biological family to be apart of her life, so since her 1st birthday she has come to stay with us at least once a month for the weekend (usually every other weekend). She is such a happy, sweet, well-adjusted child whom I absolutely adore. I cannot imagine what the past 12 years would have been like without her!

Aubrey will be 4 years old next Tuesday. She is my godchild and I've been a part of her daily life since the moment she was born. That little girl has a bigger piece of my heart than she'll ever know! She is so incredibly bright for her age... it really shocks people that she is only 3 years old. You forget that your talking to a small child when you talk to Aubrey. Not only is she gifted intellectually, but she is also a very compassionate and loving child. She is simply amazing.

Recently Aubrey told her mom that she wanted to play Pretty, Pretty Princess with her mom, my best friend Victoria and me. She said, "You and Victoria can be on a team and me and Aunt Nicole will be on a team." When her mother asked her why she didn't want to be on her team Aubrey said, "Because I want to play kids against grown ups!" I laughed so hard when Robin (Aubrey's mom) told me this story. All of my nieces call me a "grown-up kid" and I absolutely love it!

Wordless Wednesday

Favorite Foto Friday

The theme is then and now. This week I'm going to feature my niece/goddaughter/namesake Savana Nicole, who is 28 months old.

I didn't get my first digital camera until she was 2 months old so...

Then...

*EDIT* I just found this picture on a disc of Savvy just a few minutes after she was born. That's her big sister Aubrey seeing her for the very first time...

And now...


And here is a pic of the sisters today...

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Compassion

Favoritie Foto Friday

This week's theme (hosted by Kiss The Frog 4 Me... a lovely blog I have been following for a few months) is SLEEPING ANGELS...










That is my precious niece Aubrey, now almost 4. This was taken when she was about 8 months old. How cute is she?!

Happy Birthday to her daddy - my brother - who is turning 28 today. Happy B-day, Jason!

**EDIT**
I had to add this picture I took a few minutes ago of my 2-year-old niece Savana...
What a hoot!

Happy Valentines Day

This is some of the stash I got from various loved ones today. My boys (in my class) were so excited for their Valentine's Day party. They are only 2 but they definitely know the definition of the word PARTY!! I could hardly get them down at naptime. We made the cutest cards for their parents....with their little handprints and a heart-shaped picture of them in the middle. They were so proud of those cards! One of the sweet little girls that was in my class last year brought me a bag of Kisses - which I shared with my boys. So we were pretty sugar high and they were in complete celebration mode. And I'm talking climbing on everything-squeeling with joy-chasing Miss Cole-crying for more candy-standing on the table doing the chicken dance-kind of celebration mode. So while they were still pumped up for the party at naptime it took everything in me not to curl up with one of them on their mats and catch some shut eye! Miss Cole is worn out!

Actually, I just might take a quick nap before class tonight. Can you believe this is how I am spending Valentine's Day night? Now where's my chocolate...

Wordless Wednesday

Favorite Foto Friday

My 2-year-old niece "Savvy" is a crack up! Today my mother took her and her big sister to McDonalds for lunch. They were playing on the playground when an elderly couple with their infant grandson arrived. Savvy loves babies so she was smitten right off. When the lady asked Savvy what her name was Savvy replied, "Jack da Beanstock".

Yesterday, my mother was lecturing Savvy for misbehaving. So Savvy looked right up at her and said, "Nanny, you makin' me cwazy!"

When Savvy's daddy does or says something he shouldn't in front of his little girls, Savvy always straightens him out by saying "You a bad girl, daddy!"

She keeps us in stitches around here!

**The picture of Savvy was taken on Nanny's swingset this past summer. Wow, how much she has grown up already!**

Ash-Baby

I blogged on Saturday that I had spent that night introducing my nieces, particularly my oldest niece Ashton, to the band Hanson, whom I was crazy about back when I was around her age. Ashton went home on Sunday and downloaded a few of their songs that she liked onto her iPod. She told all the kids at her middle school about Hanson and how they had been the Jonas Brothers of the 90s. Well, one of her teachers overheard her and said that her daughter is married to Zac. (Zac is the drummer and youngest brother.) Her teacher was thrilled that Ashton was a fan and promised to get the boys to sign something special for her the next time they come to Atlanta. Ashton told her that her aunt had gotten her into them so her teacher promised to get them to sign something for me as well. How sweet is that?! Ash was so excited to call and tell me about this yesterday. I knew that Taylor (the middle brother and lead singer) is married to a girl who use to live in the same county here in GA as Ashton, but I didn't know that Zac married a Coweta County girl, too!

Ashton is now talking non-stop about going to see one of their concerts with me if they ever come back to Atlanta and possibly getting backstage passes. LOL... It's nice to have something like this that we can bond over. She and I have always been super close. I refer to her as my first child because when she was a baby and she would spend the weekend at our house, I would take care of her like a little mother (I was 13 when she was born). And to this day (she'll be 12 later this month) she still spends every second with me when she is here and tells all her friends that I'm her best friend. She even says she wants to move in with me when she turns 18! I know in the next few years her friends will become the most important thing in her life.... but I am so thankful that we have formed such a close relationship over the years. I know that come what may, our bond will stay strong forever.











































So now I just have to find out if Hanson is still around and, if so, when they are coming back to ATL! The 13-year-old in me has been awakened.

Wordless Wednesday

Where's The Love

So how did I spend my Saturday night?

....



Those cuties are my nieces Ash-Baby, Aubz and Savvy. I pulled out my old Hanson CD (after telling Ash-Baby that Hanson were the Jonas Brothers of my day) and they loved it. That CD sure did bring back a lot of memories!

Favorite Foto Friday

Two years ago, I went on the vacation I had dreamed about since I was 13... a disney cruise to the bahamas. It was only a 4 day, 3 night cruise, but I had the time of my life and loved every single second of it...including the first night when I was pretty darn sea-sick.

This picture of the Disney Wonder was taken on Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. Good times, beautiful memories!